History
First incarnation
Formed in Newcastle-upon-Tyne during 1962 and 1963 when Burdon joined the existing Alan Price Rhythm and Blues Combo, the original line-up comprised Eric Burdon (vocals), Alan Price (organ and keyboards), Hilton Valentine (guitar), John Steel (drums), and Bryan "Chas" Chandler (bass). The Animals' moderate success in their hometown and a connection with The Yardbirds manager Giorgio Gomelsky motivated them to move to London in 1964, in time to be grouped with the British Invasion. They performed fiery versions of the staple rhythm and blues repertoire (Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker, Nina Simone, etc). Signed to the Columbia Graphophone subsidiary of EMI, a rocking version of the standard "Baby Let Me Follow You Down" (retitled Baby Let Me Take You Home) was their first UK hit single.
It was followed in June 1964 by the huge transatlantic hit "House of the Rising Sun". Burdon's howling vocals and the dramatic arrangement created arguably the first folk rock hit. Whether the arrangement was inspired by Bob Dylan's version of the song (which in turn was inspired by folk singer Dave Van Ronk) or by blues singer Josh White's (who recorded it twice in 1944 and 1949) or by singer/pianist Nina Simone (who recorded it in 1962 on At The Village Gate, predating Dylan's interpretation) remains a subject of dispute, as does whether all five Animals deserved credit for the arrangement and not just Price.
The Animals' two-year chart career, masterminded by producer Mickie Most, featured singles that were intense, gritty pop covers such as Sam Cooke's Bring It On Home To Me and the Nina Simone number Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood. In contrast their album tracks stayed with rhythm and blues, with Hooker's Boom Boom and Ray Charles' I Believe to My Soul being notable examples. Burdon's powerful, deep voice and the use of keyboards as much or more than guitars were two elements that made the Animals' sound stand out.
By May 1965 the group was starting to feel internal pressures. Price left due to personal and musical differences as well as a fear of flying on tour; he went on to a successful career as a solo artist and with the Alan Price Set. Mickey Gallagher filled in for him on keyboards for a spell, until Dave Rowberry replaced him and was on hand for the hit working-class anthems We Gotta Get Out of this Place and It's My Life. Around that time, an Animals Big Band even made a one-time appearance.
Many of The Animals' hits had come from Brill Building songwriters recruited by Most; the group, and Burdon in particular, felt this was too restrictive. As 1965 ended the group switched to Decca Records and producer Tom Wilson, who gave them more artistic freedom. In early 1966 MGM Records, their American label, collected their hits onto The Best of The Animals; it became their best-selling album in the U.S. In February 1966 Steel left and was replaced by Barry Jenkins; a leftover cover of Goffin-King's Don't Bring Me Down and the powerful hard rock tune See See Rider were the last hits as The Animals.
By this time their business affairs "were in a total shambles," according to Chandler (who would go on to manage Jimi Hendrix), and the group disbanded. Even by the standards of the day, when artists tended to be financially naïve, the Animals made very little money from their successes, eventually claiming mismanagement and theft on the part of their manager Mike Jeffery.
Second incarnation
A group with Burdon, Jenkins, and new sidemen John Weider (guitar/violin/bass), Vic Briggs alias Antion (guitar/piano), and Danny McCulloch (bass) was formed under the name Eric Burdon and the New Animals (or sometimes just Eric Burdon & the Animals) in October 1966, and changed direction. The hard-driving blues was transformed into Burdon's version of psychedelia, as the former heavy-drinking Geordie (who later said he could never get used to Newcastle, "where the rain comes at you sideways") relocated to California and became a spokesman for the Love Generation, but also a former heavy metal act and one of the upcoming stars of the genre such as Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple..
Some of this group's hits included "San Franciscan Nights", "Monterey" (a tribute to the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival), and the anti-war "Sky Pilot". There were further changes to this line-up: George Bruno (a/k/a Zoot Money, keyboards) was added in April 1968, and in July 1968 Andy Summers [sic] (guitar)—later of The Police—replaced Briggs and McCulloch.
By 1969 these Animals had dissolved, and Eric Burdon joined forces with a Latin group from Long Beach, California called War.
The first hit under Eric Burdon & War was the funky/chill-out song Spill the Wine. The Group with 8 members disbanded in July 1971.
Later incarnations
The original Animals line-up of Burdon, Price, Valentine, Chandler, and Steel briefly reunited for a benefit concert in Newcastle in 1968, for an album in 1977 and again for an album and tour (supplemented by Zoot Money on keyboards and Steve Grant on guitar) in 1983. Chandler died in 1996.
In the 2000s Burdon has toured with a new set of musicians under the name "Eric Burdon and the Animals". Periodically during the 1990s and 2000s Valentine, Steel, and Dave Rowberry toured under the name "(Hilton Valentine's) The Animals" and Valentine and Steel under the name "Animals II". Rowberry died in 2003. As of 2005 "Animals & Friends" was also active, consisting of Steel and Mickey Gallagher; this group frequently play gigs on a Color Line ship that travels between Scandinavia and Germany.
Legacy
The original Animals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Their influence can be heard in artists as varied as The Doors, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Canned Heat, David Johansen, Joe Cocker, Fine Young Cannibals, Iggy Pop, Mando Diao and many, many more.
Tobacco Road
The Animals Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My mama died, daddy got drunk
He left me here to die or grow
In the middle of Tobacco Road
I grew up in a rusty shack
And all I owned was hangin' on my back
The Lord knows how I loathe
But it's home, it's really my home
The only life I'll ever know
But the Lord knows I loathe
Tobacco Road
I'm gonna leave and get a job
With the help and the grace of God
I save my money, get rich I know
Bring it back to Tobacco Road
Well, well, well
Gonna bring me some dynamite, gonna bring me a crane
Got to blow you up, got to tear you down, start all over again
I'll rebuild the town, I'll be proud to show
And keep the name of Tobacco Road
But it's home, it's home
The only life that I've ever known
I despise you 'cause you're filthy
But I love you because you're my home
Tobacco Road, Tobacco Road
Tobacco Road, Tobacco Road
Say you're dirty and filthy
I despise, I despise you 'cause you're filthy
But I love you because you're my home
Tobacco Road, road
Talkin' about a dirty, funky, filthy low down place
Tobacco Road, well, you're so dirty and filthy
The Animals' "Tobacco Road" immediately immerses the listener into the harsh reality of the song's protagonist, who was born and raised on the titular Tobacco Road, a poor, rural area known for tobacco farming in North Carolina. The first two lines in the song are particularly striking as they bring up abandonment, poverty, and alcoholism all at once. Despite the difficult setting, the singer still regards Tobacco Road as his only home, even though he admits to loathing it. The chorus is sung with a mix of disgust and affection, emphasizing the complex and often contradictory sentiments towards home.
The lyrics illustrate feelings of frustration with the living conditions on Tobacco Road, where people struggle to eke out a living. Nevertheless, despite the difficulties, the singer of the song remains loyal to home and is determined to make things better. In the last part of the song, he expresses hope that he can rebuild the town with the help of God and his hard-earned money, and that he will remain proud of his roots.
Overall, "Tobacco Road" is an emotive and introspective song about the sun-bleached South, its social inequalities, and the resilience of the human spirit.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, I was born in a dump
I was born in a very poor and unpleasant place
My mama died, daddy got drunk
My mother passed away and my father became an alcoholic
He left me here to die or grow
He abandoned me to either perish or survive on my own
In the middle of Tobacco Road
In the midst of an impoverished and destitute area called Tobacco Road
I grew up in a rusty shack
I was raised in a rundown and dilapidated dwelling
And all I owned was hangin' on my back
I possessed very little and carried all my worldly belongings with me
The Lord knows how I loathe
I dislike this place greatly
This place called, Tobacco Road
This area known as Tobacco Road
But it's home, it's really my home
However, despite my disdain for Tobacco Road, it is my hometown
The only life I'll ever know
It is the only existence I have ever experienced
I'm gonna leave and get a job
I plan to depart from here and seek a means to earn a living
With the help and the grace of God
I will rely on the assistance and benevolence of the divine
I save my money, get rich I know
I will be thrifty and accumulate wealth
Bring it back to Tobacco Road
And return to Tobacco Road with my newfound prosperity
Well, well, well
Well, well, well
Gonna bring me some dynamite, gonna bring me a crane
I will acquire explosives and a large machine to demolish this area
Got to blow you up, got to tear you down, start all over again
I must destroy this place and rebuild it completely
I'll rebuild the town, I'll be proud to show
I will reconstruct the town and take pride in showing it to others
And keep the name of Tobacco Road
But I will maintain the name of the area as Tobacco Road
But it's home, it's home
Despite my negative feelings about Tobacco Road, it is still my home
The only life that I've ever known
It is the only existence I have ever experienced
I despise you 'cause you're filthy
I hate this place because it is dirty and squalid
But I love you because you're my home
But I also love it because it is where I am from
Tobacco Road, Tobacco Road
Tobacco Road, Tobacco Road
Say you're dirty and filthy
Admit that you are unclean and unkempt
I despise, I despise you 'cause you're filthy
I hate you because you are grubby and disheveled
But I love you because you're my home
But I also adore you because you are my birthplace
Tobacco Road, road
Tobacco Road, road
Talkin' about a dirty, funky, filthy low down place
Referring to a disgusting, unsanitary, and lowly area
Tobacco Road, well, you're so dirty and filthy
Tobacco Road, you are indeed grimy and unclean
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: John D. Loudermilk
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Elisabeth Axelsson
Eric is one of a kind what a voice , his feling of blues as great all the emotions and soul in his voice is outstanding a true blues man
Carol Desmond
Just discovered in 2022.
I heard of the Animals, but didn't know anything about them.
Now I am learning and loving their great talent.
Love Eric.
Dwayne Wladyka
Eric Burdon is my favorite male vocalist, along with Ray Charles. I like the range and delivery he has with his singing. Cheers!
Roberto Cappadona
Now you take me to my roots .
Drink Locally
Eric can sing everything and do an excellent job
Butler Crow The Guitar Player
They were and still are the greatest English blues band.
Sid
No the small faces was.
Alan Lane
@Sid Pretty Things ???
Sid
@Alan Lane Yes with ! 🙃
Har Par
sorry SAVOY BROWN .....